Californian mother changing the lives of Syrian refugees

A US mother is mobilizing volunteers and using an online fundraising platform to help Syrian families on their journey to safety.

Californian mother changing the lives of Syrian refugees

Horrified by the image of 3-year-old Aylan Kurdi’s drowned body on the coast of Greece, Californian mother Cristal Logothetis launched into action.

More than 9,000 refugees arrive on Greek shores daily with 30% of those children. After their processing in Greece many families begin an arduous journey on foot to northern European countries, such as Germany and Sweden, in search of more permanent settlement. These families do so with babies, toddlers and whatever possessions they have in their arms.

Following the crisis Cristal Logothetis decided the best way she could help would be to thrown her efforts into providing these families with the means to make this journey better: with Baby Carriers.

She began by using online campaigning platform Indiegogo, leading a successful ongoing campaign to raise funds, and has since founded the non-profit organisation Carry the Future.

Earlier this month she has coordinated a visit with volunteers to distribute and fit refugees with the carriers.

“As soon as we started putting those baby carriers on [the refugees] and seeing how grateful people were … it was very empowering,” says Logothetis.

Logothetis and Carry the Future began as a campaign to raise $2,500 and 100 baby carriers but has now grown to a network of over 3000 volunteers across the globe, with currently $85,029 USD raised.

Carry the Future continues to collect new and used baby carriers and funds to reach newly arriving refugees.

“We all have a responsibility to help out on this planet. Everybody has their own calling and [if] we each embrace it … this would be a much smaller world.”